MBSS Site Summary for: CORS-106-X-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site CORS-106-X-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site CORS-106-X-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on THREE BRIDGES BRANCH in the Corsica River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130507.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/26/2008 and again in the summer on 7/15/2008.

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) Results:

An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) is a scientific tool used to identify and classify stream health. An IBI associates anthropogenic influences on a stream or with biological condition in the stream, and is formulated using data developed from biosurveys.
Details on the development and application of MBSS IBIs are in this document.
Fish IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.1 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 2,123 acres Cows standing in a stream at a site with high agricultural land use. Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
Urban Land Use 1.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 64.2 %
Forested Land Use 33.1 %


Stream showing woody debris, logs, and rocky substrate.
An example of woody debris in a stream.

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 44 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 39 meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 90 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 90%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 19.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.75
Conductivity 315 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1629 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.219 mg/L

Biological Stream Condition:

Surveys of the organisms living within a stream can give indications of stream health. Species richness, or the number of different species present, as well as indicator species (species whose presence, absence or abundance can serve as a measure of environmental conditions) are informative for stream health. 		Close-up of a mayfly indicator species.

Fish Survey Results:
The following 7 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Tessellated Darter 65
Green Sunfish 28
American Eel 20
Fallfish 14
Least Brook Lamprey 9
Eastern Mudminnow 6
Pumpkinseed 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Fowler's Toad
Northern Green Frog
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 24
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 13
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 10
Prosimulium Black Fly 7
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 7
Acerpenna Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 5
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 5
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 4
Labrundinia Non-Biting Midges 4
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 3
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 3
Bithynia 2
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 2
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 1
Argia Narrow-Winged Damselfly 1
Paralauterborniella 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Helichus Beetle 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Nanocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 1
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 1
Isotomidae Springtail 1
Kick net sampling for macroinvertebrates.
Sampling with a kick net.

Information disclaimer: The information and data on this page is for guidance and general planning purposes only. It should not be used to make decisions on specific matters.